Do not do anything useless.
(Miyamoto Musashi)
Groundpath & mind
At the beginning of tai chi training the groundpath depends upon an
obvious physical structure.
Later, it is created by using the mind.
Fa jing requires the groundpath to be a constant feature in every movement
at all times.
If you lose groundpath for a second, your body will crumple as you
deliver and the fa jing will hurt you rather than the opponent.
Yang Cheng Fu style form
Fa jing can be expressed throughout the
Yang Cheng Fu style form if you choose to make it
explicit.
But it is more common to practice the skill separately from the form.
The 2 person set and other partnered drills assume fa jing to be present throughout the sequence
(if required).
At an advanced level, your fa jing ability becomes internalised.
Jing
What matters in a martial art is the effect of your movements.
Jing can be defined as 'your
opponents experience of the kinetic energy you manifest'.
Tai chi movement begins with
intention.
Intention directs the
nerves, the nerves move the
muscles and the body produces a movement.
It is necessary to differentiate clearly between the types of jing at your
disposal.
Without such knowledge, how are you going to fa jing?
Energy release without focus is random and clumsy.
Dim-mak
Dim-mak striking is not the same thing as nerve point striking. You are
not targeting the nervous system.
Your targets are not pressure points or nerve clusters.
The acupuncture meridians are the target. The energy meridians.
Consequently, brute force is not required.
Dim-mak is
energy point striking, and does not work without fa jing.
There are three possible outcomes to a dim-mak strike:
dim-su - incapacitation
dim-shao - bloodgate
dim-mak - death touch
Dim-mak controversy
The topic of dim-mak is a controversial one.
Although many exponents can demonstrate the effectiveness of dim-mak
strikes, there is little scientific evidence to explain exactly what
happens to the body when struck in this way.
The lack of empirical research does not disprove anything. It simply means than our understanding of the phenomenon is limited.
Chin na
Tai chi
chin na in our school does not feature any locks or
holds whatsoever.
Holding involves fixity and tai chi is fluid, not held. Chin na must be
delivered rather than held.
Seizing, tearing, breaking, splitting and sealing are applied with the flow.
They
are not an end in themselves.
When you hold a person, you must sustain your strength.
In doing so, you are also holding yourself immobile and vulnerable to
attack from other people.
Students with an external background tend to find this confusing at
first because they compare chin na to ju
jitsu or aikido.
Eventually most of the chin na skills should be delivered using fa jing.
The energy wave breaks the bones rather than local muscle
strength.
Of itself so
Fa jing will not come if you force it or even seek to practice it.
Forget that it exists.
Chase it and it will elude you.
Focus on learning neigong.
When it wants to occur, it will.
Your body will know when it is ready. It will just feel right.
At some point fa jing will fuel your
movement and you will be surprised.
Fa jing must occur easily.
Easy & natural
Our aim in tai chi is to encourage the body to move without hesitation
or impediment.
Jing release must become natural and easy for it to be effective.
You must learn how to move in the tai chi way.
The development of fa jing occurs gradually:
Cultivation of neigong
Practice of form and drills
Looseness and softness
Involuntary joggles occur during form practice
Whole body movement becomes involuntary
Sung occurs
Fa jing occurs
The training is internalised
Fa jing can only
happen when the student gives themselves over to the practice.
When they let go.
Fa jing is a complete expression.
How do you learn fa jing?
Beginners start by studying a set of moving qigong exercises designed to
loosen the body and expel kinetic energy.
Some of these exercises are partnered in order to experience the effect of
an energetic release in contrast with purely physical striking.
At this stage, jing is unrefined but the ability to release exists.
Beginners learn to employ two different jing as a foundation for 13
postures.
The intermediate syllabus teaches 13 postures (involving eight specific
types of energy release) and the experienced syllabus
teaches jing combinations.
Once the 13 postures and jing are
understood, the form must be explored anew.
The body mechanics of each posture need to be reconsidered in the context of
energy release.
Students are also taught a crude level of fa jing as a precursor to the more
complex variations offered within the advanced syllabus.
Page created 25 November 2000